What does the truth matter? Haven't we mothers all given our sons a taste for lies, lies which from the cradle upwards lull them, reassure them, send them to sleep: lies as soft and warm as a breast!
Georges BernanosRead
Have you never been moved by poor men's fidelity, the image of you they form in their simple minds? Why should you always talk of their envy, without understanding that what they ask of you is not so much your worldly goods, as something very hard to define, which they themselves can put no name to; yet at times it consoles their loneliness; a dream of splendor, of magnificence, a tawdry dream, a poor man's dream -and yet God blesses it!
Interpretation
What this quote means
The quote reflects on the unfulfilled desires and dreams of the poor, emphasizing their need for something beyond material wealth.
Georges Bernanos explores the deep emotional connection that the less fortunate have with the idea of grandeur and magnificence, which they often perceive through the lens of admiration towards those who are more fortunate. He suggests that their longing is not for material possessions but rather for a sense of beauty and hope that transcends their current reality, which serves to console their loneliness and ignites their dreams.
Themes
DreamFidelityLonelinessWealthMagnificencePoverty
In practice
Example use cases
This quote could be used in a speech about empathy and understanding the struggles of the less fortunate.
More from Georges Bernanos
All quotes →Fear, true fear, is a savage frenzy. Of all the insanities of which we are capable, it is surely the cruelest. There is naught to equal its drive, and naught can survive its thrust.
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I know the compassion of others is a relief at first. I don't despise it. But it can't quench pain, it slips through your soul as through a sieve. And when our suffering has been dragged from one pity to another, as from one mouth to another, we can no longer respect or love it.
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It's a fine thing to rise above pride, but you must have pride in order to do so.
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Hell, madame, is to love no longer.
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God! how is it that we fail to recognize that the mask of pleasure, stripped of all hypocrisy, is that of anguish?
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